Junk Bond Observatory
| Junk Bond Observatory | |
|---|---|
| Code | 701 |
| Location | Sonoran Desert, Sierra Vista, Arizona, United States |
| Coordinates | 31°28.51′N 110°12.24′W / 31.47517°N 110.20400°WCoordinates: 31°28.51′N 110°12.24′W / 31.47517°N 110.20400°W |
| Altitude | 4,425 ft (1,349 m) |
| Established | 1996 |
The Junk Bond Observatory (JBO) is located in Sierra Vista, Arizona in the Sonoran Desert.
Established in his backyard in 1996, observer David Healy began by using a Celestron 14 SCT and a 16-inch Meade LX200 telescopes in a roll-off shelter. In 2000, a 20" Ritchey-Chretien was installed, to be replaced by a 32" Ritchey in 2004.
Asteroid searches began in 1998 using a local computer network and search software. Its first asteroid discovery, named 38203 Sanner after Glen Sanner, was made in June 1999 by Jeff Medkeff. Of JBO's 400-plus asteroid discoveries, 68 were made in 1999-2001. Since December 2004, using a 32-inch scope, 86 designations have been made. Twelve of the discoveries have been assigned permanent numbers by the Minor Planet Center and seventeen have been named.
Until his death in 2011 Healy was a frequent contributor of follow-up observations to objects on the Near Earth Asteroid Confirmation Page, surveyed for asteroids netting approximately four new discoveries per month as of January 2007, performed discovery and confirmation photometry of extrasolar planet transits, and performed photometry of cataclysmic variable stars and active galactic nuclei. The telescope operated robotically, unattended for most of the night, controlled by software by Bob Denny and Jeff Medkeff.
JBO continues in nightly use searching for extrasolar planets transits under the supervision of the Spectrashift.com team.